GODORT Connection, Vol. 4, Issue 1

Alabama Library Association Government Documents Roundtable March 2021 Volume 4, Issue 1

GODORT Connection Image from https://pixabay.com/images/id-5045568/

Moderator’s Corner Here it is, a year later, and the COVID-19 pandemic is still with us. It has been a truly disruptive time for our country and we’ve all become accustomed to wearing facemasks, etc. Many, if not most, of us have been working remotely from home. In my case, I’ve been working on-site but, in effect, remotely since most of my colleagues are not physically in the office and my communication with patrons has been primarily via Zoom, computer chat, telephone, or e-mail. This semester I taught four library instruction sessions in person wearing a mask plus face shield and I brought along a small bottle of hand sanitizer as well. We all can share similar accounts. I sincerely hope none of you has come down with even an asymptomatic case of the disease and that none of you has lost a family member or friend. While there are some signs of hope (for now, a decreasing rate of infection and the roll-out of vaccinations), it is far too early to definitely state that “happy days are here again.”

I am happy to report that GODORT has been able to function during this strange and disturbing era. Recent accomplishments include a webinar on “Library of Congress Slave Narratives” presented by yours truly on December 7, 2020, and a webinar on “Census and Sensibility: Using and Interpreting U.S. Census Records” presented by Mary Beth Newbill on January 27, 2021. Editor Kelly Wilson continues to produce our online newsletter, the GODORT Connection, and I continue to produce the “GODORT Note,” both of which help keep GODORT visible and both of which help inform our readers of the infinitely vast and fascinating world of government documents. I am very pleased to report that we have engaged Marilyn Stephens, Partnership Coordinator, U.S. Census Bureau, Atlanta Region, as our program speaker for the virtual annual convention of the Alabama Library Association to take place April 28. More details will follow.

Once again, I will be running for Moderator-Elect to succeed myself and Rickey Best will be running for Secretary-Treasurer to succeed himself in these offices. We both are happy to serve GODORT but we both have likely retirement on our horizons: perhaps another two to three years? I mention this only to strongly encourage you to consider running for one of these offices during the next election (i.e., the 2022 election) since GODORT urgently needs to have leadership in the pipeline before Rickey and I ride off into the “golden years” of retirement.

Finally, you’ll notice that yours truly is the primary author for this edition. Our members are still small in number, so it’s understandable not many are available to respond to a call for article ideas and submissions. The plus side is that you have a very decent chance of getting your article published in the newsletter. Remember, this is not a very demanding peer-reviewed process. As long as you write accurately and reasonably well, your submissions are very welcome. Please consider responding to the next solicitation for article ideas and articles.

Tim Dodge ALLA Moderator

Inside this issue ALLA GODORT Steering Committee….…..…….2 COVID Vaccine Resources in AL...………........…3 The Federal Income Tax…………………….…..4-5 Historical Events So Far This Year…………....…..6

Officers

Tim Dodge, GODORT Moderator 2020 - 2021 He has been employed at Auburn University Libraries since 1992, starting out as a government documents reference librarian. Since 2000, he has been serving as History and since 2008 as Political Science Subject Specialist in the Reference Department at Auburn. Tim held previous positions as a special collections librarian and archivist, serials librarian, and reference librarian at the University of New Hampshire (twice) and at Barry University (Miami, Fla.). Tim has held numerous offices in the Alabama Library Association including President (2004-2005) and ModeratorElect and Moderator of GODORT in

1994-1996. He has also held numerous offices in the Alabama Association of College and Research Libraries including President (20002001 and 2008-2009), and is currently President of the Southeastern Library Association. Under the name Dr. Hepcat, Tim Dodge has hosted the Golden Oldies radio show on WEGL – Auburn FM 91.1 since May 1998.

His radio career extends back to 1975, and Tim is the author of The School of Arizona Dranes: Gospel Music Pioneer (Lexington Books, 2013). He is also the author of Rhythm and Blues Goes Calypso (Lexington Books, 2019).

OPEN POSITION: GODORT Moderator-Elect, 20192020 We are currently looking for someone to volunteer for the Alabama Library Association’s GODORT Moderator-Elect position. According to the GODORT Bylaws, the official role of the Moderator-Elect is as follows: “The Moderator-elect shall perform the duties of the Moderator in the absence of the Moderator; shall be a member of the Steering Committee; shall be responsible for the program at the annual meeting; shall serve as

Membership Chairperson; and shall serve as an aide to the Moderator.”

Furthermore, the Moderator-Elect takes part in the Steering Committee which provides leadership for the round table, which includes meeting regularly.

For more information, contact Tim Dodge at dodgeti@auburn.edu.

Rickey Best, GODORT Secretary 2020 - 2021 Rickey Best has been employed at Auburn University, Montgomery since 1986. He is also the contact for one of the two FDLP Alabama Regional depository libraries— AUM. He received his MLIS from the University of California, Berkeley in 1986.

He also has a Masters of Arts degree in Historic Resources Management—Archives from the University of California, Riverside.

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COVID Vaccine Resources in Alabama By: Kelly M. Wilson

Though many have received the COVID-19 vaccine, we still have a long way to go until everyone has been vaccinated. Unfortunately, finding out where to get the vaccine and signing up for it, have become a headache for many people. For this reason, I've created a list below of helpful tips and resources to help people gain access to vaccine resources. This list is not exhaustive, but it's a start. Check with your city and county government sites as they may have more detailed information about vaccine distribution. Also, check with your doctor -- they should be able to get you in contact with the right people to get you scheduled.

Helpful Tips • If you are eligible, keep an eye out on vaccine distributors, you don't know when they'll get a new batch in so watch those appointment availabilities!

• Read the fact sheet! Even if you just skim over it, at least look at it once. Personally, when I was going to get my vaccine, I made sure to read the possible side effects.

Where Can I Get the Vaccine?

• APH's Mass Vaccinations Clinics • Walmart! (participating ones only) • Sam's Club (participating ones only) • Hospitals in Alabama (see below) Hospitals in Alabama (Online Registration available unless otherwise noted) Alabama Public Health List of Providers This is just a list, there are no links to the individual site's web pages. (Select the appropriate tab to get the correct list such as "ADPH Appointment Only Clinics")         

Birmingham, AL -- University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Decatur, AL -- Decatur Morgan Hospital Dothan, AL -- Southeast Health Huntsville, AL -- Huntsville Hospital Mobile, AL -- Infirmary Health (MUST CALL) Mobile, AL -- Springhill Medical Center Montgomery, AL -- Baptist Health (MUST CALL) Opelika, AL -- East Alabama Medical Center Tuscaloosa, AL -- DCH Health System

About the Vaccines  Alabama Public Health  APH's Eligibility Check and Scheduling Portal  CDC—Different COVID-19 Vaccines  How Vaccines Work (CDC)  Safety of COVID-19 Vaccines (CDC)

Cool Stats!

Alabama's Vaccine Distribution Dashboard

What you will need the day of the vaccine: • Mask!

• Photo Identification • Proof of Eligibility (such as proof of employment)

What to do AFTER you are vaccinated?  Report in with the CDC’s V-safe health checker. 

When You’ve Been Fully Vaccinated (CDC)

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The Federal Income Tax

By Tim Dodge, Auburn University

References 1. Robert M. Willan. Income Taxes: Concise History and Primer (Baton Rouge, La.: Claitor’s Publishing Division, 1994), vi 2. Ibid, v.

3. Office of the Curator, Department of the Treasury Department of the Treasury (Washington, D.C.: Department of the Treasury, 2006), 23. (Retrieved via “History of the Treasury Department” site).

4. Robert A. Caro. The Years of Lyndon Johnson: Master of the Senate (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002), 50-51.

5. See Table of Contents, Willan, Income Taxes.

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This is the time of year when we need to file our income taxes. Taxation, being one of the essential operations of government, means that sooner or later, librarians who work with government documents will encounter patrons seeking information about income taxes or, more likely, encountering patrons who are seeking tax forms. This also applies to state income taxes. Here we will focus exclusively on the U.S. federal income tax. This article will provide a basic history plus a general overview of using the Internal Revenue Service’s website to locate tax forms and instructions.

The first federal income tax was imposed in 1861 to fund the rapidly escalating costs of the Civil War. The Revenue Act of 1861 was the first of several such acts. The Bureau of Internal Revenue was established in 1862 as part of the Treasury Department to collect this tax. These acts remained in force until 1872 and they established basic concepts that would be incorporated into the permanent federal income tax that was to come in 1913. First, by providing for deductions, this established the concept of a tax on net income as opposed to a tax on gross income, in other words, a tax on disposable income1. The next attempt at imposing a federal income tax came in 1894; however, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled this tax as unconstitutional in 1895 on the grounds that it was based on income derived from real and personal property and thus was the equivalent of a direct tax on the property itself and thus, unconstitutional2.

The Sixteenth Amendment to the Constitution reinstated the federal income tax on a permanent basis starting in 1913. The Bureau of Internal Revenue was reorganized; it would be renamed the Internal Revenue Service in 19533. The passage and ratification of the Sixteenth Amendment in 1913 was the culmination of many years of progressive reformers’ efforts to reduce or repeal tariffs (taxes on goods transported from one place to another) that had favored the wealthy (manufactured goods, railroad freight rates, and more) plus the reforming efforts of President Woodrow Wilson4. Following the precedent set by the Civil War-era income tax, the income tax of 1913 was based on disposable (net) income, thus putting most of the tax burden on the wealthy.

This is not intended to be a full-blown history lesson, but it is worthwhile noting that there have been a number of revisions of the law as found in the Statutes at Large and the United States Code (see Title 26 Internal Revenue Code) pertaining to the federal income tax over the past century-plus. These changes have been implemented via the Revenue Acts of 1921, 1924, 1932, 1934, 1938, 1942, 1951, and 1978 and the Tax Reform Acts of 1969, 1976, 1984, and the big one many of us remember from the Reagan presidency, the Tax Reform Act of 19865. Of course, the tax laws are constantly being changed to this day and the complexity of keeping up with these changes provides job security for accountants, tax preparers, and tax lawyers.

As those of us who started filing income taxes before the Internal Revenue Service went online will remember, it used to be quite easy to find tax forms at places such as the local Post Office and the public library. Most depository libraries (whether public or academic) also usually had a good selection of tax forms on hand for patrons seeking them. Some of the more obscure forms might need to be ordered but that was a simple matter of calling the regional IRS phone number. In addition, depository libraries normally received a huge binder of tax forms and instructions that patrons could use to temporarily remove the needed form(s) and instructions and make their own photocopies (Reproducible Copies of Tax Forms and Instructions, SuDoc number T 22.57:1132/ ). Those binders were retained for previous years, so patrons needing to amend or file taxes from an earlier tax year still had access to the needed forms even if several years old.

In directing patrons to available tax forms or the Reproducible Copies binders, librarians and library staff members were always aware that if a patron asked for advice, we had to be sure to inform them that we could only supply the forms or instructions, but were NOT authorized to provide tax advice. (The same thing has also always applied to patrons seeking medical or legal information).

It is still possible to place orders for print tax forms and instructions and it certainly is possible to print out forms and instructions as well. However, many tax filers nowadays prefer to fill out and submit tax forms online. The IRS supplies “fillable forms” online and, for those with an adjusted gross income of less than $72,000 a year, there is the IRS Free File option. Numerous commercial online filing services, perhaps with Intuit TurboTax being the most famous, are available too and it is possible to pay a professional tax preparation service (H & R Block, among others) to file one’s taxes as well. There are still a few of us such as this author who prefer to file our own taxes by hand using printed out forms and this remains a viable option too.

Let’s take a look at the basic structure of the IRS web site (https://www.irs.gov/ ) as it currently appears for Spring 2021. The IRS web site greets the viewer with a large number of options including eight prominently displayed links ranging from “Get my Economic Impact Statement” to “Apply for an Employee ID Number (EIN).” The person seeking tax forms and instructions has three main options to start: 1) click on the “Forms &Instructions” link center top of the screen, 2) the “Search Forms and Instructions” link center right side of the screen, and 3) a search box upper right side of the screen. In addition there are hot links for the following high-demand forms and schedules: “1040 and Schedules 1-3,” “Other 1040 Schedules,” and “Form 2290” (“Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax Return”). Any of these options works reasonably well depending on one’s interest and circumstances. Assuming my financial circumstances as an academic librarian are not too different from your own, I have found it most convenient to click on the “Forms & Instructions” link center top of the screen.

This brings up a number of hot links including one for Form 1040 which, turn, brings up links also to the instructions.

Recognizing that many of us, as life goes on, may have a more complicated financial history than simply the paycheck from one’s employer, there likely will be a need to locate other forms or schedules plus instructions. For example, if you itemize things such as a mortgage and charitable donations, you might want to use Schedule A. How do you find it? Perhaps the easiest way is to click on the “Search Forms & Instructions” link located center right of the screen.

This brings up a prominently displayed search box labeled “Forms, Instructions and Publications Search.” If you type in “Schedule A” (with or without quotation marks, the result is the same) and click the “List All Current Forms & Instructions” button you don’t, perversely, get to Schedule A. Instead you get to the start of a list of 2364 files listing the “Product Number” (i.e., the form, publication, or instructions number) plus a new search box. It turns out, there is a rational reason for this: before entering “Schedule A” again, you are now presented with the option of choosing a search field: “Product Number,” “Title,” or “Revision Date.”

Leaving the search field on “Product Number,” once again you enter “Schedule A” and this actually brings up 14 results. There is more than one Schedule A! However, it is easy to select Form 1040 (Schedule A) and Instructions.

The above searches are just a quick example of using the IRS web site.

Personal finances and the need to file federal income taxes can get very complicated, so there are, literally, thousands of forms and instructions available through the IRS web site. While my tax filings are probably simpler than those for some people, I do long for the days when all I had to do was fill out the (now defunct) 1040EZ form.

“Democracy pondering the Income Tax Law” Retrieved from https://www.loc.gov/pictures/ resource/acd.2a08404/

Updated 1040 form for 2020.

Updated Schedule A form for 2020.

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Historical Anniversaries: Jan—April 2021 Alabama Library Association GODORT Provides a forum for librarians working with government documents. Objectives also include the promotion of availability, use and bibliographic control of documents; and the promotion of communication between documents librarians and other librarians. GODORT is an affiliate of the American Library Association. Membership is open to any member of the Association who subscribes to the objectives of the roundtable.

January  500th Anniversary of the Roman Catholic Church's decision to excommunicate of Martin Luther, Jan. 3, 1521.  75th Anniversary of the first meeting of the United Nations -- Jan. 10, 1946  60th Anniversary of President Kennedy's Inauguration -Jan. 20, 1961  40th Anniversary of President Reagan's Inauguration -- Jan. 20, 1981 February  220th Anniversary of Thomas Jefferson's presidential election -- Feb. 17, 1801 March  60th Anniversary of the Peace Corps -- March 1, 1961  160th Anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's Inauguration -March 4, 1861 April  125th Anniversary of the first Modern Olympics (held in Athens) -- April 6, 1896  35th Anniversary of Chernobyl -- April 26, 1986

Submit Your Work Do you have an interesting experience with local, state or federal government information? Write up an article and share it with us!

You can send it to: Tim Dodge: dodgeti@auburn.edu

Kelly Wilson: kelly.m.wilson2011@gmail.com